I Could Fall
by Rainy-Jayne
Summary: A famous author has moved in to Playa Linda with his daughter. Things go well at first, but will it last? Jealous foes and new relationships occur. Will Bradin and Anna's friendship last? Rated for abuse, adult situations, language, etc...
1. Moving and Meeting

Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters...blahblahblah

Sorry that this first chapter is so long. I guess I just had a lot to say in it (not a lot of interesting stuff, but that will come later), and I didn't feel like making 3 or 4 little chapters out of it, so you get one big one :) Just think of it as like...three or four chapters in one...I'm taking away the inconvienence of clicking the button...haha. Okay, I'm done. It's kind of shaky cause I'm still developing the plot, but I promise it's going to be more interesting as it develops.

The morning was a beautiful one in Playa Linda. It was still too early for businessmen to be rushing off to work, or for children to be outside playing on this Sunday morning as everything around was quiet. _"4:30...almost there."_ Anna thought to herself as she looked out the window of the car. As they turned, the water came into view, and Anna sighed a small sigh of relief. _"There it is; home..."_ She couldn't believe that they were actually there. After 2 days of driving from their old home in northern Wisconsin, they were finally there.

Within fifteen minutes, they pulled up in front of a fair-sized home located right on the beach. It wasn't like the home she had left back in Wisconsin, it was definitely larger in size and instead of living on the beach, she used to live on a small lot, with a backyard as an alley. There were no pine trees around and she had a feeling that she wouldn't be seeing eagles for a long time. Instead, there was sand and tall sea grass, waves and palm trees. It was the first time Anna had seen any of these things.

"Well what are you waiting for, kid? Get the hell moving this shit in the house. Don't expect it to move itself," her father sneered. Okay, so it had been her father's fantasy to move out to paradise. He'd always hated the "northern words" and had talked for years about getting away. If Anna's mother had still been around, (she'd died unexpectedly seven years earlier) she would have talked sense in to her father, telling him that it was unrealistic to just pick up and move from the middle of nowhere to the middle of somewhere. But Anna had a feeling that the move had something to do with her mother, even though she was gone. Ever since she had died, her father had not been the same man. Gradually, he had grown violent and crude. More often than not, he'd take it out on Anna; she always seemed to be "getting in his way". The more precautions she took around him, the more she seemed to disturb his peace. She did what she could, though, so keep the bruises covered, the cuts bandaged, and tried to keep herself as invisible as possible.

However, since Karen (Anna's mother) had died, her father's writing seemed to have taken off. He was an author. Spending his days drinking, sleeping, agonizing, or some other pitiful way of living had actually got him places. In the past three years, he had three books on the New York Times Bestseller List and the last two were part of a five-book series that had really taken off. For a lot of kids, it would be a strange transition to go from "just getting by" to really having money, but not in Anna's case. Her father hated spending the money he earned. The only time money was really ever spent was for him to buy liquor or another pack of cigarettes, and on occassion he'd send Anna for groceries. This house was the first signigicant thing he'd bought with his money, and you could tell he was proud.

Anna looked up at the house once more and began unpacking the car. Everything else had arrived the week before by way of the movers. Upon walking in front door for the first time, Anna could do nothing but look around in awe. The place was beautiful and large; a place she'd never imagine herself living in. And decorated! The whole place had already been set up. It was beautiful. The colors were brilliant and rich, and the television mounted on the wall was absolutely huge. Setting her boxes down, she looked around more. Anna didn't recognize hardly any of the things in the house. Everything was new and magnificent looking. She headed out the back door and found herself on a deck, furnished with outdoor furniture, hanging lamps, and a bit further down, a lovely gazebo. And of course the water. Anna sighed. Was she really at home?

She headed back inside and to her surprise her father was whistling happily, digging in one of the boxes. He saw her in the corner of his eye and looked up, smiling. "Well, what do you think?"

"It's...amazing. Wow, I can't believe this." Anna was still in awe of her new surroundings. This made her father smile.

"Have you checked out your bedroom yet? It's upstairs." He said, pointing to the winding staircase before him. Anna was particularly perplexed by her father's niceness towards her, but she wasn't about to question it.

"No, I'll go do that. Hey...Dad, how did this stuff all get set up?" She wondered.

"The decorator came and did it throughout the week. She wanted it to be ready for us when we got here." He answered, proudly.

Anna nodded and bounded quickly up the stairs to the spacious second-level. She ended up in a square hallway. There were three walls, and when she turned around there was two big glass doors on the fourth wall. Walking over to them, she looked out and saw they led to a sundeck. Beyond the sundeck, she looked out over the water and watched as the sun began to rise. Anna began opening doors in the hall, trying to find her bedroom. She went through her father's room, two closets, and a bathroom before she opened one more door and felt her eyes widen. _"This must be it."_ She told herself. It was massive and so beautiful. She even had her own computer, television, and phone. Anna felt like a princess. She walked around, checking out every detail. A private bathroom, another (slightly smaller and private) sundeck, and a beautiful bay window that overlooked the water. _"Do people really live like this?"_ she wondered, as she sat down on her bed and slowly drifted off to sleep for a few more hours.

Around 11 that morning, Anna sleepily opened her eyes, remembering where she was. Smiling to herself, she took a quick shower. _"God, I don't know what I did to deserve this, but thank you."_ Life had never been so good for her, and she was hoping it'd stick around for awhile. Getting out of the shower, she opened her closets and drawers to figure out something to wear that day. To her surprise, her new clothes were mixed in with a slew of fashionable new clothes. Mini skirts, halter tops, all kinds of things. _"What the..."_ She started, as she looked through. Anna had never been too "girly". It's not that she was a complete tom boy, but living in Wisconsin her whole life, they had no use for mini skirts and heels. Plus, her mother hadn't really been around to guide her with clothes. Thinking for a moment, she decided on a tee-shirt from her old school, and her favorite pair of soccer shorts. She walked over to the mirror and looked in it and decided just to let her naturally wavy brown hair dry on its own.

Downstairs, Anna looked for her father but saw him nowhere. "Dad?" She called out. Her eyes fell on a note on the dining table.

_Anna,_

_Went out to meet an old friend for lunch._

_Here's some money if you get hungry or anything,_

_I shouldn't be long. We don't have any food yet, so _

_you'll have to go and find a place to pick something_

_up, but I'm sure there's something. _

_See you later,_

_Dad_

Beside the note, there was two twenty dollar bills and a ten dollar bill. "Fifty dollars for food?" she spoke outloud.

Just then, the doorbell rang. Looking around, Anna was a bit shy of answering the door, but eventually she shrugged and walked towards the door, opening it. There stood three women, each holding some kind of platter. "Hello," said one of the women with a big smile. "Welcome to the neighborhood." Throughout that afternoon, many people stopped by to welcome Anna and her father to the neighborhood. Even though her father wasn't home, Anna had fun meeting her neighbors and getting food. Even though three-fourths of the food was jello, some people had made cookies, brownies, and Mrs. Jones who lived across the street had sent over a fruit platter. After each person had come to welcome them, Anna made sure she wrote down their name, where they lived in accordance to them, and the food they had brought them so that she could write thank-you's to them.

When it seemed as if all of the people in the world had dropped by, Anna laid back on the couch and closed her eyes, smiling to herself. Within thirty seconds, the doorbell rang once more. Shaking her head, she stood up, walked to the door and opened it. To her surprise, it wasn't just a woman this time, it was a woman and two children. "Hi," the woman smiled, holding out her hand for Anna to shake. "I'm Ava Gregory and these are Nikki and Derrick Westerly, my niece and nephew. We just wanted to stop by and welcome you to the neighborhood."

Anna shook her hand and smiled. "It's really nice to meet you, I'm Anna Scott. I really appreciate you coming to introduce yourselves. I'm sorry my Dad's not here for you to meet, he went out to grab some lunch with a friend awhile ago."

"Oh, do not worry about that, I'm sure we'll get to meet him later, afterall we do live just next door." Ava laughed. Anna smiled, she liked this woman. "Oh, and here, we backed you and your father some cookies this morning, Derrick and Nikki were excited to meet you." She said, as Nikki handed her the cookies.

"Oh wow, thanks so much, these are great. They smell really good." Anna smiled.

"So, Anna, where did you and your father move here from?" Ava inquired as Anna invited them into the house. They took seats in the family room.

"Um, Northern Wisconsin, up by Superior." She answered. All of their eyes widened.

"Wow, Wisconsin? This must be quite the change." Ava laughed.

Anna smiled. "Yeah, but it seems great here...really beautiful."

Ava nodded. "Nikki and Derrick here, and their older brother Bradin moved here awhile ago from Kansas. It was a shock to them at first, but they've all adjusted really well. I was going to have Bradin come too, but he had surf team practice so, I'm sure you'll meet him later."

"Oh that's cool, yeah it seems really nice here though. All of the people that have stopped by have seemed really nice and it's just nice to finally be here."

"Yeah, you'll really like it here," Nikki chimed in.

"So, are you starting school tomorrow?" Ava asked.

"Yeah, I'll be there tomorrow. It should be interesting. Back at home I've had the same 30 kids in my class since kindergarten."

"Wow. Well, if you want, I can have Bradin stop over in the morning to get you while he walks to school. It's not too far from here. That way you'll at least know someone?" Ava offered.

Anna bit her lip. The thought of meeting new people her age freaked her out. She didn't want to trouble this kid that she'd never met. "Oh..no, it's fine. I don't want to bother him. Really."

Ava laughed at this. "I don't think he'll mind. I mean you're on the way, right?" Anna just nodded and smiled nervously. "Well Anna, it was really nice meeting you, I'm sure you'll be fun to have around these parts. And I'll talk to Bradin about tomorrow morning. Be waiting for him." Ava said, as they all stood up to leave.

Anna pushed the worry out of her mind. "Oh, and thank you guys for coming over to say hello, it really means a lot."

They walked over towards to door as they started to leave. "You guys ever need a cup of sugar or anything, we're right next door," Ava laughed. "See you later Anna."

"Bye you guys." And with that, they were gone. _"What nice people,"_ Anna thought to herself.

She brought the tray of cookies into the kitchen with all the other food and added their names to the list. Looking around, she laughed. She had never seen so much sweet treats in one room. One by one, she began putting them away in their respective places.

The day was turning out to be a beautiful one and Anna dearly wanted to go outside. Her father had been gone for hours now, which did not surprise her. Looking down at her arms and legs, she realized that her make up was wearing off, and you could see the peeking throughs of bruises and welts. She went upstairs, reapplied some, then changed into her suit. After inspecting herself closely in the mirror, she decided she'd be okay to go outside and read a book. Putting her soccer shorts back on, she went out in her top with a book under her arm. Anna walked down towards the water, sat in the sand, and began reading. However, she couldn't keep her mind on the book. She could see for what seemed like miles down the beach. People were out playing and having fun, and others were in the water surfing, or swimming and here she was alone, reading a book. Anna had never really minded being alone. Back home she had 2 "close" friends, but none that she felt too pained to be away from. They were all pretty independent people, and Anna was usually at home taking care of whatever her father needed done that day or at soccer practice. Soccer was one thing she loved. It just gave her a feeling of power and control that she couldn't get anywhere else. Plus she was extremely talented. This past season she had been first team all state. It was the one thing that nobody could take away from her. Anna turned back to her book and tried to concentrate on the words, doing her best not to think about the past anymore.

Across the way, Bradin jogged back up towards the house. Jay was standing outside, waxing his board. "Hey man," he said to Jay, propping his board up.

"Hey," Jay said, continuing to wax the board.

"Is Aunt Ava here?" Bradin inquired.

"Nah, I think she took the kids for something to eat. I haven't seen them around all afternoon." Bradin nodded at this, opening his water bottle and taking a sip out of it.

He looked out at the water for a moment then back to Jay. "There are some great waves out there today, man. Took me for a ride."

"Yeah, I caught some early this morning." Jay answered in his thick accent. "They were killer."

Bradin looked back out to the water, then surveyed the area around him. His eyes stopped on a figure in the sand from the house next to them. The long, wavy hair clued to him that it was probably a girl. This of course immediately held his attention. "Jay, who is that? Did someone move in next door?" He asked.

Jay looked up from waxing his board and peered down towards the figure. "Oh yeah, that author guy moved in. Ah...what's his name...James Scott, I think? Must be his daughter."

"James Scott moved in next door to us?" Bradin questioned, very surprised. He recognized the name from the news and just from seeing his books around. That guy was a huge success.

"Yeah, and have you _seen_ that place? I can't even begin to imagine what the inside looks like. It's huge." Jay went back to waxing his board and Bradin continued watching the girl. Occassionally, she'd look up from what she was reading and look around her. Jay laughed and shook his head at Bradin. "Why don't you go _introduce_ yourself? At least have some decency." He teased.

"Should I?" Bradin asked, seriously.

Jay nodded. "If you don't, you're a coward. Plus, at least from behind she seems cute. Just go. You have an excuse, you're her _neighbor_." He gave Bradin a push in her direction, and he started off walking.

_"What do I say to her? Hi? That sounds so stupid. Maybe she doesn't want to be bothered...I mean she does seem pretty into that book...then again, maybe she'll be cool."_ All sorts of thoughts ran through Bradin's head as he approached her. He got nearer and nearer and his heart starting beating very fast for some reason. Stopping for a moment he looked back at Jay who was watching him and waved him on. Bradin turned back towards the girl. He came up very close to her and gently tapped her on her shoulder.

"**AH!**" She screamed as she jumped about a foot in the air. Bradin backed up, eyes wide. "Oh my God," she said, breathing deeply.

"Oh my God, I'm sorry. I did not mean to scare you." He inched closer to her. Turning to him, she let out a sigh of relief. Bradin looked at her up close and his breath escaped from him. He had just scared possibly one of the most gorgeous girls he had ever seen. Her long, wavy dark brown hair, shaped her thin, delicate face. She had a fair skin color and big, deep green eyes. After a moment, he realized he was staring and shook his head to bring him back. "Sorry, I just...I'm really sorry for scaring you..." He bit his lip and appeared slightly uncomfortable.

Anna gave a light laugh. "It's alright. I'm Anna," she spoke, offering her hand for him to shake.

"Bradin," he said back to her.

"Oh, so _you're_ Bradin." Anna observed. He looked slightly perplexed.

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, you're aunt stopped over this morning to introduce herself, Nikki, and Derrick. Really nice people."

He sighed a little sigh of relief and took a seat next to her. "Oh, well that's cool. So you just moved here?"

"Yeah, from Wisconsin." She answered.

"Wow, another midwesterner. That's awesome." Bradin loved California girls, he really did...but his real weakness was midwestern girls. Something about them could not be found anywhere else in the world. They just _got_ things.

"Yeah, you're originally from Kansas, right?"

"That's right. How do you like it here so far?"

"Oh, it seems real nice. It's a lot different, but I think that's a given. I'm just not used to..." Anna paused and looked around at the water and beach, palm trees and sunny sky. "...all of this...it's kind of like culture-shock," she joked.

"Yeah, you'll warm up to it though, it's really a nice place."

"I bet." They sat in somewhat of a silence for a few moments. Anna looked around and breathed in the fresh air.

"So...starting school tomorrow?" Anna laughed at this, then nodded. "That's cool. If you want, I can stop by before school and we can walk together...I mean if you want..."

Again, Anna laughed. "Your aunt already volunteered you actually. Only if you want to, though. I don't want to cause any trouble."

"Trouble? You're on the way. Of course I don't mind. At least then you won't be completely alone on your first day. Seriously, don't worry about it." He smiled at her, and she looked down smiling, trying not to meet his eyes.

"Alright, well thanks. That's really nice of you."

"No problem."

"BRADIN! TIME TO EAT!" Jay screamed down to him. Bradin closed his eyes and shook his head.

Anna's eyes grew wide at the accent. "Who is that?" She smiled, giving a light laugh.

Bradin shook his head and rolled his eyes. "That's...Jay." Jay had a knack for embarassing him in front of people, just for kicks. "Well, Anna it was really nice meeting you. I'll be by tomorrow morning around 7:30 or so to pick you up, okay?"

"Alright, thanks again Bradin. I really appreciate it."

"No problem...and again...I'm really sorry for scaring you before." Smiling, he waved and turned away.

Anna looked out at the water, sighing to herself. _"Life is good."_


	2. White Lies

Bradin sat at the dinner table, sipping water, slightly in a daze. Everyone else around him was talking, as he pushed his food around with a fork, not really in the mood to eat. "Oh Bradin," his aunt started. He looked up, meeting her glance. "Today your brother, sister, and I went to meet our new neighbors. The father wasn't home, but his daughter, Anna who is your age was. I went out on a limb and told her you'd walk with her to school tomorrow, if that's okay with you? You know, just so she's not alone."

Just as Bradin was about to answer, Jay cut in with a laugh. "Oh, he's already met her. Just before. They were making goggly eyes at each other for awhile."

Bradin sighed, "Shut up, Jay. Yeah, Aunt Ava, that's fine. I was talking to her before."

"She is really pretty," Nikki chimed in. "I swear, she looks like a model."

"And their house is _huge_!" Derek exclaimed.

"Yeah, I didn't know James Scott was moving in next door, though." Bradin said, slightly confused to his Aunt.

Susannah's eyes got big. "James Scott? As in...the author?"

"That's his house?" Ava asked.

"According to Jay." replied Bradin.

Everyone looked to Jay for an explanation.

"What? That's what I heard. I heard they moved here from Wisconsin. Don't shoot the messenger." And he went back to eating.

"Wow, that's kind of cool. We live next to an extremely famous author." Sunsannah boasted.

"Hopefully he's half as nice as his daughter. I guess you never know with moody writers, though." Ava joked.

Bradin's phone buzzed, and Callie's name showed up on it. "Thanks for the dinner, Aunt Ava. It was really good. Callie's waiting outside, I won't be too long." He said, taking his dishes over to the sink.

"Alright, remember you have your homework to do, though so don't be too long." She called after him as he ran out the door. Looking at Susannah, she sighed, shaking her head.

"Hey!" Callie said, running up to him, hugging him.

"Hey you," Bradin responded with a peck on the lips. They started off, walking down the beach. The sun was just setting, making the night slightly cooler. Bradin pulled Callie close to him.

"I missed you today, how was practice?"

"It was good. You know, practice I guess."

"That's good." She snuggled in closer to him. "Wow, they finally finished that place." She noticed as they passed Anna's house. "It's huge."

Yeah, I met the girl that lives there today, Anna. She's our age."

"Oh..." Callie trailed, not sounding too excited.

"Yeah, she's nice. I can't believe her dad is James Scott. That's nuts." He added.

"That rumor is true? That James Scott moved in there? I thought it was just a rumor." Callie was not liking the sound of this whole situation.

"Yeah, according to Jay it's true. That's cool, huh?"

"I guess. I'll uh...be looking forward to meeting her at school."

"She's starting tomorrow. I could tell she seemed a bit freaked by it, so I hope everything goes alright." Bradin was not about to tell Callie that he was walking to school with her tomorrow morning, as he could already tell Callie was just uncomfortable with her living so close to Bradin.

"I'll be nice to her, and I'll tell all the other girls to be, too." She turned to him and smiled. They were at the pier now. It was virtually empty, always was on Sunday nights.

"Well that's nice of you," He responded, giving her a long, gentle kiss on the lips.

Callie smiled slyly, "I know." She returned the kiss.

It was nearly 9:30 when Bradin returned to the house, Ava, Susannah, and Nikki were watching television and Derrick was asleep. He went up to his bedroom, sat at his desk. Losing himself in thought for a few moments, he blankly stared off. When he came to, he turned towards his radio and switched it on. An old jazz tune filtered quietly through the speaker as if it were elevator music. Tapping his pencil, he tried to concentrate on the page of math problems in front of him.

Just then, a light switched on directly across from him. Interrupted, he looked up and his lips curled into a smile when he saw Anna walking into her room. She sat down at her bed and stared for a moment. He noticed that her window was opened and followed with opening his. It was either the music or the sound of the window opening that startled her, maybe both, but she immediately turned to face him. When she realized who it was that she was looking at, she too smiled and went to her window.

"Hey," Bradin spoke out to her.

Smiling and looking down, Anna waved. "Hi, Bradin."

For a moment, there was a silence. The only sound that could be heard was the faint song coming from the radio, and a bird that stood on a palm outside. "Enjoying yourself so far?" He questioned.

Anna nodded. "Mmm-hmmm, sure am."

Bradin returned the nod, satisfied with her answer. "Tomorrow then, I'll be by. Don't forget." He grinned.

"Of course not. I'll be ready and waiting. So, goodnight for now, and thank you again. I really appreciate it." The two locked eyes for a moment before she blushed, turned away, and pulled her drapes closed. Bradin caught himself smiling, and he sighed. The picture of Callie on his desk caught the corner of his eye. Turning to it, he bit his lip. Tomorrow would be a very interesting day.

If you've been reading so far, thanks a lot. I'm really just trying to get a feel of what people are thinking of the story. I figure won't continue if it's not really read, or liked, haha, but if it is, then I definitely will. So, thanks again!


	3. New Situations

Hey, thanks to all of you who have read and reviewed my story. I always love seeing the first set of reviews as theyr eally get me fired up to continue the story. Oh, and Caligirl77, thanks so much for pointing that out. I didn't realize that it was set like that, and changed it. Glad you guys are all enjoying this! Here's the next piece.

The following morning, Anna rose early. It was only 5:45 when she stepped into the shower. She couldn't help it, though...the idea of starting all over was exciting and scary at the same time. She would no longer have a class of 30 or so kids, and wouldn't know a single person. Then, she remembered Bradin and smiled to herself. He had been so nice to her and made her feel so welcome. Getting out of the shower, Anna walked over to her closet, not looking forward to picking out an outfit. What to wear? Just then, her bedroom door swung open. Startled, Anna let out a yelp.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!" Screamed her father, as he walked in, shirt wrinkled and vodka on his breath.

"G..get..getting ready f.f...for school.." Anna spat out.

"It's six in the fucking morning. What the hell are you trying to do, wake me up? Cause it sure as hell is working!" Stumbling towards her, his hand cracked across her face as he slapped her. Anna used her hand as a compress as her lip started bleeding. She did what she could to hold back tears. "Get some fucking clothes on, slut." He slurred, motioning to the towel wrapped around her. Anna did nothing but nod. When he stumbled out, Anna let out a sigh of relief and let the tears fall. She would never cry in front of anyone besides herself, ever. It was a rule she had. Still, she felt foolish for believing that her father had changed. He was still the same man he had always been, just in a different location.

Anna walked towards the mirror, noticing that her lip poured out a signigicant amount of blood. She grabbed a cloth and held it there while she went back to her closet, making sure to be very quiet. _"I'll look horrible no matter what."_ Anna's subconcious had a way of overpowering her, though, she went very well about hiding it. Sighing, she walked out onto her balcony, staring out. The day was bright and already showing signs of being warm. The sun rose steadily over the water, shining brilliant colors in every direction. A typical Playa Linda morning. Goind back to her closet, Anna gave up and selected a jean mini skirt and threw on an old tee-shirt from when she played 3 v 3 two years ago. Her team had won, going all the way to Indiana for the finals. She really missed playing soccer. Her wavy hair had dried itself by 6:45 and as she stood in front of her mirror, Anna couldn't help but think, _"Plain."_ To herself. Knowing that there would be other girls dressed to the nine's at school, she figured she'd just be invisible. What she didn't know however, was that her natural beauty was able to shine through. Anna didn't have to wear high heels and fancy clothing to really stand out, she just did naturally.

After slipping on her favorite pair of ADIDAS sandals, she headed down to the kitchen. Forgetting that they hadn't gotten any food yet, Anna was left with a wide variety of desserts and other odd things from neighbors to choose from. Deciding to be healthy, she grabbed the fruit platter and put a few pieces on the plate in front of her. _"I wonder what it'll be like...starting over. It's going to be incredibly strange not having any of the girls there with me to talk to, or run to if something goes wrong. I mean Bradin will be there, but I don't expect him to hover over me and help me all day...it's nice that he's even walking with me. But, I'm sure he has his own group of friends...it doesn't matter anyways. I'll just blend in." _Anna's thoughts were interrupted by a knock in the door. 7:20, he was early. Anna took a deep breath before opening the door, and finally mustered up the courage to do so.

"Hey!" he greeted, smiling and excited.

"Hey, hold on a minute, okay, I'm just going to brush my teeth really quick, okay?" Bradin nodded and Anna quickly ran up the stairs and brushed her teeth. _"Here goes nothing,"_ she thought to herself as she ran downstairs. Bradin couldn't help but notice how at ease she appeared, and as Derrick and Nikki had said the night before...very pretty. "Alright, I'm ready!" Anna exclaimed, grabbing her bag.

"Great." The two walked out into the beautiful morning, making there way to school. "Excited?" He questioned.

"Oh...I guess," Anna laughed. "I'm not going to lie, I'm pretty nervous."

"Nah, no need to be. You'll love it here, and I'll be here with you the whole time. Seriously, you ever need anything, just come to me."

"Thanks, Bradin." Anna said.

The two walked in silence for a few minutes, just taking in the scenery. Bradin looked down to her. She was so short walking next to him...couldn't have been too far over five feet. It made him smile. Anna looked up to him, catching him staring at her, and looked down immediately, smiling secretly to herself. "Hey, wait...what happened to your lip?" Bradin asked, stopping and facing her. Anna's face heated. Could she really have been so careless as to forget to put cover up on? For a moment she panicked.

"Oh..err, ummm, accident with the soccer ball," She tried laughing it off.

Bradin bought it. "Oh, you play!"

"Yeah, I guess..." Anna nodded, thankful he wasn't going to press.

"Wow, that's awesome. Playa Linda has one hell of a girls team, I should introduce you to the coach. The season has started, but maybe she'd consider letting you on." Anna just nodded.

Before she knew it, they were standing outside of Playa Linda High School, amidst masses of kids. Anna had been right about one thing...the girls there really did dress nice. She looked down at her plain outfit, slightly embarassed. She bit her lip, hoping things would go well.

"Bradin!" A guy shouted. Anna and Bradin simultaneously glanced upwards. He was a taller boy, brown hair and built, tanned and had a flock of girls around him.

Bradin nodded. "Hey man, Alex, I want to introduce you to someone. This is Anna Scott, she just moved here from Wisconsin. Anna, this is Alex."

Alex's eyes grew big. "As in James Scott's daughter?" Anna bit her lip and nodded, trying to smile. "Dude, he actually moved here. That's amazing." The flock of girls that had been around him gradually assembled themselves around Alex, Bradin, and Anna. "Ladies, meet Anna Scott." Alex said, eyeing Anna. Anna cringed slightly as the girls, all dressed in really, really mini skirts, tanks or halters, and heels. They all had perfect hair and teeth, and the perfect bodies. Blonde bombshells.

"Hey...nice to meet you," Anna offered. They stayed silent for a few moments, and then one who Anna took to be the "flock" leader spoke.

"The author's daughter, right?" Her elegant voice asked. It was neither friendly nor cold, just bare. Anna nodded. "Alexis," The girl labeled herself, sticking out her hand. "People just call me Lexi, though." She gave Anna a slight smile before pulling her hand back and taking off with her posse of girls.

"It was er...nice to meet you Anna," Alex grinned as he followed after them.

"You too!" She called after him.

Bradin shook his head, laughing lightly. "Gotta watch out for Alex...he's been with every girl, I swear." Anna's eyes widened, following Bradin as they headed into the school. He led her up to the second floor main office. "Hey, Mrs. Richards," he greeted one of the ladies. "This is Anna, she just transferred from Wisconsin." She looked up, slightly startled, her glasses nearly falling off of her. Mrs. Richards was an older woman...the kind of woman everyone secretly wished was their grandmother. She just had this sweet, caring way about her that really drew kids into her.

"Oh, hi there!" Mrs. Richards finally said, a big smile on her face. "Great, Anna Scott, right? I have your schedule right here, and a lock for you. Bradin, will you take her to help her find a locker and maybe a few of her classes? If you need a pass just come back here for one. We're really busy in here today." She sounded very exasperated. Bradin grinned, and nodded, taking Anna's schedule and lock. They headed back out into the hallway where Anna immediately felt eyes that were looking her over and over.

"That's her," one bystander whispered to her friend, as she pointed towards Anna.

"The author's daughter," another whispered into a friend's ear.

"I heard they moved into practically a mansion." One kid exclaimed, slightly out loud.

Bradin looked down at her, as she seemed shaken. "Your reputation proceeds you," he laughed.

Shaking her head, Anna closed her eyes. "This is really unreal..."

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, you're in a few of my classes. Let's see...Creative Writing, Science, Gym, and we have the same lunch period." Anna did feel at ease, knowing that she'd at least know someone. They arrived at an empty locker, as Bradin undid her combination. "My locker is two sets of lockers down, and across the hall...not far from here at all. This is the closest I could get. It okay?" Anna nodded, again biting her lip. "How about you...are you okay?" Again she nodded, trying to give a smile. "Come on, everything will be okay, I promise."

Anna went throughout that day, very fazed by everything around. People were actually noticing her...talking to her...talking about her. It seemed like everyone wanted to be her friend. However, she had not yet had to go through her first lunch period. Anna had gotten late lunch, apparently the most crowded lunch. At 1:10, she headed into the cafeteria, looking around for Bradin. When she spotted him, her heart raced. He was at a table with Lexi, and some of the other girls from that morning, Alex, and a few other guys she didn't know. She attempted to walk over towards them, but decided she didn't have the nerve. So, she slowly turned around, trying to find a vacant seat. A few seconds later, someone grabbed her arm. Scared, she tensed and let out a yelp. When she turned, she realized that it was only Bradin. She let out a sigh of relief and caught her breath. "You," she started, "Have a knack for scaring me."

Bradin laughed, looking apologetic. "I really am sorry. I was just wondering why you weren't coming to sit by us."

"Oh...I err, didn't see you anywhere." She lied.

"Oh, well we're over here, come join us." He gestured towards the table of people and led her towards them. All of their heads slowly turned, and every pair of eyes was on her. "Everyone, I'm not sure if you've met Anna. Anna...this is everyone." Bradin pulled her up a chair between him and another guy.

"Anna, hey." Lexi, greeted, giving a slight smile.

"Oh, so you're the Anna I've heard so much about," another girl said. She was seated next to Bradin, picking at a muffin. "I'm Callie," she said in a somewhat unfriendly voice."

"It's nice to meet you all," Anna said to everyone. She hadn't packed a lunch, as they had no food and wasn't really in the mood to eat.

"You hungry?" The guy next to her asked. She turned to him, noticing that he was devilishly good looking.

"Oh, no, I'm not really hungry at all." Anna tried to give a slight smile.

"Oh, alright well, I'm Jake." He introduced. _"He has a great smile."_ Anna thought to herself.

Lunch was sufficiently awkward for her. Bradin's attention was mostly on Callie, Anna figured they had something going on. Everyone else gave awkward glances up towards her, then quickly back down again. She made small talk with Jake who was nice enough, and Lexi, who seemed to be warming up to her, suggested they hang out some time. She was however relieved when the bell finally rang. The rest of the afternoon was a blur, as she coasted through, hearing people say the same things over and over again. When the final bell ran, she walked out in relief. Finally.

Bradin met her as she was walking out of the building. "So...how was it?" He asked, grinning. The bright sun greeted them as it shone down on them.

"It was...interesting. A learning experience," she laughed. "Kind of weird, but interesting."

He nodded. "Well, it will get better, I promise. You just need to give it time, you know?" Anna returned the nod as they started on their way home. "Let's take the short cut," Bradin suggested as he led them through a field. The school was in distant view now, and Anna looked around her at the long grass and vast nothingness before them.

"Wow, this is kind of cool out here," she noted. "Really peaceful."

"Yeah, it's a nice place, not many people know about it, I just kind of stumbled upon it one day."

"That's cool." They turned onto their street and continued to walk. "I really appreciate everything, Bradin. Honestly, everything you've done means a lot to me."

"It's no problem, I swear. I had fun. And you're a fun person, so it just made it all that much better." Anna smiled at this. "Want to stop in for a little bit?" He asked her, gesturing towards his house.

"Hm...sure, why not?" Anna answered, following him into the house. He led them up to his room, after saying hello to his Aunt and Susannah. "Cool place," She told him, looking around and noticing how like a home the place felt.

Bradin scoffed. "Yeah, I'm sure it's millions times better than that mansion thing you have going on over there." He laughed, with a hint of sarcasm in his voice. Sighing, Anna gave a slight look down, only wishing her house felt as much like home as this house. "So talk to me...I mean I know you and now I want to know about you."

"Well..." Anna was at a loss for words. What to say? "I play a lot of soccer...and I write a lot. Hmm, my mom died when I was younger and since then it's just been me and my did in the northern woods...until now of course. What about you?"

Bradin looked down at the mention of the death of her mother. "I'm sorry to hear about your mom...that's why I'm out here actually. My parents both passed away...killed in a flash flood, and my Derrick, Nikki, and I all packed up and moved out there to live with Aunt Ava. Oh, and I surf." For some reason, Bradin felt a sense of security in being completely open with her. He hated talking about his parents, but telling all this to her made him feel somewhat relieved. The look on Anna's face was a mix of sadness, and shock.

"Wow, a flash flood...I'm really sorry..." she tried to offer words that might help, but little did she know that just seeing that she cared enough to feel the sadness too let Bradin knew she cared.

"It's okay, really. So, you play soccer. Any good?" He teased.

Laughing, Anna shrugged. "We won state the past two years, I mean, if that's good enough."

Nodding in acceptance, Bradin grinned. "That's awesome.

For another two hours, the two sat up in his room, talking and sharing memories like they were old friends. Anna had convinced Bradin that Wisconsin wasn't as boring or ugly as most people made it out to be, and he had convinced her that some sun wouldn't give her skin cancer. Anna and Bradin were entirely comfortable with each other, it was as if they were old friends who hadn't seen each other in a long time and were just catching up. For once, they were both at ease.

"Oh my gosh," Anna sighed, looking at her watch. "It's 5:30, I really should get home. I need to start dinner."

Bradin nodded, understandingly. "Alright, want me to walk you home?" He smiled.

"Hah, nono, it's alright, I think that I can make it."

Feeling slightly let down, Bradin nodded. "Oh, okay then, I'll see you tomorrow morning, same time, same place?"

Anna laughed and nodded. "Of course. Thanks again, I really appreciate everything." And with that, Anna was out the door.

Thanks for reading, everyone. I'm just trying to get a feel of how you guys are liking the story. Input would be fabulous :)


	4. Reassurance

Thanks for continuing to read everyone, I really appreciate the comments, ideas, and suggestions. I'll take everything you say into consideration. Here's chapter 4 :)

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The next few days were a blur. Anna actually came to enjoy school a great deal. Never before had she had so many friends. Everyone wanted to be her friend and a lot of the guys were giving her a lot of attention. Anna had never been in a relationship, and it's not that she wanted to start anything...in fact it was the very opposite. She liked where she was at right now. Plus, she knew it wouldn't be fair to the guy she would be in the relationship with. However, Jake was certainly keeping her on her toes. He was very popular, and very good-looking. At any moment during the day, he had girls just pining for him. It seemed to be that way with Bradin and all of his guy friends. They were all somehwat "untouchable". Everyone wanted them and the only people that could come close to getting them were Lexi and her gaggle of girls. Speaking of which, Anna finally realized that Bradin and Callie were very much so together. Callie loved the attention Bradin gave her, and Bradin usually supplied it readily. However, since Anna had arrived, he had been spending more time with her. "To help her get acquainted," was the excuse he threw at Callie. She wasn't stupid, though, she knew plain as day that it wouldn't be too long before Bradin needed to have that "talk" with her...the one where they say, "It's not you, it's me."

The thing is, Anna and Bradin _had_ been spending a great deal of time together. They were fast friends and the fact that they lived so close to each other only encouraged the growth of the friendship. After school the two would usually go to their respective practices. Bradin to surf team and Anna to soccer; she had made varsity as a starter. One of Bradin's friends, Kelli was also on the team. After their practices, they would each go home for dinner and start their homework, and then as the sun started setting, they'd meet down by the beach just to talk or on several occassions, Anna beat Bradin in soccer by the beach. Within days, it was like they were the best of friends. Bradin really enjoyed spending time with her and Anna was just happy to have a friend.

However, things for Anna had not been going so well. While her father was out a lot more now than he had used to be, whenever he was home he found ways to crush her. Bruises adorned her arms and legs now, and she had to be very careful about hiding them. She was honestly very ashamed by them, and only hoped that they would soon fade. However, now her father made her feel guilty. Everytime after he had an episode, he'd leave her money as if to make up for what he'd done. She felt like she couldn't be sad about it now, because he was making up for it. However, it really was eating away at her. Anna didn't know how much more she could take.

"Bradin!" Callie called out at school on Friday. He turned around, giving her a big smile.

"Hey there, you." He responded, wrapping his arms around her waist and giving her a peck on the lips.

"I've missed you lately...where have you been?" Callie pouted. She toyed with the buttons on Bradin's shirt.

"Oh, come on, Cal. You know I have surf team everyday after school. I don't mean to be ditching you." Bradin assured, as he kissed her cheek playfully.

Callie sighed. "You used to make time for me before she came." Her voice was quiet and low, half wanting him to hear her, half not.

Bradin looked at her, slightly taken by surprise at the comment. "I'm just trying to show her around and get her acquainted. She's my new neighbor, it's not as though it'd be all that kind to just leave her to fend for herself, especially in her first week. I remember when I moved here, I would have given anything for someone to hang around with." His tone was slightly annoyed, slightly worried that she'd become upset.

Callie's eyes looked behind Bradin, and she shook her head. "She seems to be doing just fine." She motioned behind her.

Bradin turned to see Anna and Jake walking closely together, playfully shoving each other. Lexi was walking close to them with Eric, her boyfriend. Bradin felt a sharp pang in his stomach when he saw this, and he didn't know why. "Yeah...I guess she is." He said quietly as they neared.

"Hey Bradin," Eric called out. "You and Cal up for hanging out this weekend? We're going out on Lexi's boat if you guys want to come. We're taking off tomorrow morning around 10."

Callie looked pleadingly at Bradin. She really wanted to go, and even though Bradin wasn't really up for it, he felt he had to do something to make it up to her. "Yeah, sure...sounds cool. Is it just us?" He questioned.

"Yeah, you, Callie, Me, Lex, Anna, and Jake." He answered.

Bradin nodded. "Alright, cool."

"Sweet, meet us at the docks around 9:45 then."

The four of them walked off, as Anna wved a goodbye to Bradin. Callie scoffed at this and started walking away in the other direction. Rolling his eyes, Bradin followed after her. "Callie, wait." She turned around, looking angry. "What did I do wrong now?" Bradin pleaded.

"I can't stand her, Bradin. She's everywhere." Callie spat, referring to Anna.

Bradin's eyes grew wide in disbelief that she was still going on about this. "Callie, you saw yourself. Her and Jake are going really nicely together. I don't know why in the hell you're still going on and on about this. Seriously, get a grip and open your eyes. I am _here_ in front of _you_, not over there with Anna. As I said, I've just been trying to be a good friend to her. Is that really so bad?" His voice was accusatory and very tired.

Callie's eyes looked hurt, as he had just yelled at her. "Whatever, Bradin." Again she walked away.

Throwing his hands up in the air, not knowing what to do, Bradin followed after her once more. "Callie, stop." Again, she stopped and faced him.

"What, Bradin? Just spit it out." Bradin did nothing but look at her, and then moved into her, deeply kissing her in hopes that it would at least make her shut up. It must have been enough to make her happy as seh returned the kiss and then smiled at him.

"I have to go to practice," he said softly, looking down into her eyes. "I'll call you later or something, though. We'll go get ice cream or something, okay?" Callie nodded and he kissed her one last time before walking away.

Smiling to herself, Callie walked out the door and headed towards home.

* * *

Hope you guys liked it! 


	5. Party It Up

Thanks again for all the great reviews. Today is kind of an open day for me, so I'm getting a lot written. Hope you're enjoying it so far! I promise that things will pick up soon.

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That night, Anna came home with Lexi. A note had been left on the kitchen table that read: 

_Went up to LA for the weekend to_

_meet with the editor._

_Should be home on Sunday_

_night._

_Dad_

Shrugging, Anna tossed the note. Lexi looked at her, wide-eyed and expectantly. "What?" Anna questioned.

"Your dad just leaves for weekends at a time?" Lexi asked in amazement.

Anna had never thought anything of this. When she was back in Wisconsin, he used to tavel down to Milwaukee or Chicago to meet with editors all the time. That's just how things were. "Yeah, sure. Why?"

Grinning, Lexi picked up the phone. "I think it's about time that we invite a few people over."

Anna grew panicky. "No, no, I can't have a party. If my Dad found out, he'd kill me." Lexi just laughed.

"No, not a party, just a small get-together. Trust me, it'll be wicked fun and everyone will think you're really cool if you do it. Let me handle this." For the next half hour, Lexi made a few phone calls, getting people to come. When she hung up from the last one, she grinned, then looked Anna over. "Umm, Anna, let's go up to your room and find you something to wear, okay?"

"What's wrong with this?" Anna asked, motioning to her soccer shorts and tee-shirt.

"Well...nothing is _wrong_ with it...I just think Jake would **love** to see you in something...really cute?" Lexi said, as nice as she could. The way she said it made it sound not so mean.

"Oh...alright. Well, my closet it up in my room, so..." Before she could finish, Lexi had taken off up the stairs and into her room. When she opened her closet, her eyes grew wide.

"You have all of this, and wear soccer shorts and jeans everyday?" She asked in disbelief. Anna shrugged. "Ohh, now this is cute." Lexi said, pulling a tight, black halter from the closet. After sorting through all of her clothes, Lexi decided to have her wear the tight black halter, short white mini skirt, and black, small sandal heels. Anna went to change in her bathroom, and noticed that her bruises were very visible in this. Panicking, she started applying large amounts of make-up to her arms. "You ready in there?" Lexi asked.

"Yeah, almost." Anna shouted through the door. She thought she had covered up most of the visible bruises, and let down her hair to cover the tops of her arms. Walking out, Lexi cat-called at her.

"You look hot." She said, evaluating her. "And you have that whole sexy hair thing going on with your waves. Jake is going to be knocked out." Anna bit her lip, feeling slightly uncomfortable. "Everyone should be here in about a half hour...hey, do you mind if I wear this?" Lexi held up a small, strapless green shirt that tied in the back.

"Yeah, sure, wear whatever."

Lexi went to change and Anna looked herself over in her full-length mirror. She felt really uncomfortable in the clothes she was wearing. Thinking back, she realized that she'd never worn a halter in her life. Coming out of the bathroom, Lexi looked stunning. Her long blonde hair and perfect figure accented the tight gree shirt perfectly. Her tanned legs jutted out beneath a white skirt, similar to the one Anna had one. "God, we look sexy." Lexi commented. "Oh here, Anna, let me do your make-up."

After another ten or so minutes of Lexi applying make-up to Anna, (she had gone for the smokey eyes look) the doorbell finally rang. "They're here!" Lexi grinned, excitedly running towards the door. Anna stayed back in her room for a few minutes, trying to get herself together. After looking in the mirror, she couldn't help but not recignize her own self. Her skin was even getting tan.

_"Am I turning in to one of them? I can't be, not after I told myself that I would stay true to myself...what is everyone going to say?"_ Music had started playing downstairs, and Anna heard more voices than what should have been present at a "small get-together". Walking downstairs, she saw that there were at least 50 people in her house and more were entering, most of which she didn' t even know. When Jake spotted her, his mouth dropped open in disbelief. He tapped Bradin who was standing next to him with Callie and pointed. Bradin's eyes grew wide. Was that really Anna? She looked...amazing. Callie rolled her eyes and pulled Bradin away.

"I thought we were getting ice cream." She pouted.

"Oh come on Callie, you didn't want to miss the party, did you?" Callie just rolled her eyes and walked away. This time Bradin didn't go after her. He looked around for Anna, only to see her disappear back upstairs. Nobody else was paying attention, so he casually walked up the stairs. Not knowing where her room was, he took a guess by which one had the light shining through it. Walking up to the door, he knocked.

"Yeah?" Anna asked, wondering who would be knocking. Bradin walked in, smiling when he saw her at her desk. "Oh, hey Bradin." She smiled. He was still in awe of house beautiful she looked.

"Hey, you. Ditching your own party?" He laughed.

"Not mine, it was Lexi's idea. I'm just hiding out up here because I don't really know many people down there, so, you know." Bradin sat on her bed, as she turned to him in her chair. "And what about you? Isn't Callie having a fit by now that you're not with her?" Anna joked.

Bradin rolled his eyes. "Yeah, whatever. She'll get over it." The two sat in silence for a few moments. Anna was scribbling something on a piece of paper, and Bradin was taking another look at her. OUt of the corner of his eye, he caught something on her arm. It looked to be a really bad bruise. "Ouch, how'd you do that?" He asked. Anna looked up, confused. Bradin pointed to her arm and again Anna flushed.

"Ohh...well, we had a rough practice. Got kind of physical..." Anna tried laughing it off.

"Sounds like a violent sport...first your lip and now your arms." Bradin said steadily.

"Hey, you ready to go back down there?" Anna interrupted wanting only to get off this conversation. Bradin let it go again, following Anna back to the party.

"Anna!" Jake shouted from across the room. Anna couldn't even tell how many people were there anymore. She walked over to Jake.

"Hey." He wrapped her in a hug, and she flinched. Jake didn't notice though, and kept her in his arms.

"We were looking for you before. Where were you?" Bradin took this as his cue to go find Callie, whom he knew would be furious at him for disappearing.

"Oh, I was just upstairs, but I'm here now." She smiled as she wiggled free from his grasp. Jake took a sip from a water bottle, and then offered Anna some. "Oh, thanks, I am really thirsty actually." Opening the cap, Anna took a big gulp from the bottle, and just then her eyes grew wide. Swallowing, she looked up at Jake. "What in the hell was that?" She asked, disgusted.

Jake laughed and put a reassuring arm around here. "Vodka...haven't you ever had any before?" Anna shook her head.

"I'm from Wisconsin, the only thing we drink is beer."

Smiling, Jake held out the bottle for her again. "Some more?" He coaxed. Hesitantly, Anna took the bottle from him. She didn't really want to take the vodka, but she didn't want to be a loser either. So, she took another gulp from the bottle and swallowed.

"That is the worst tasting thing I've ever had." Anna complained. Jake laughed again, not really paying attention. "Hey, where are Eric and Lexi? I haven't seen either of them for a long time." Anna asked aloud.

Shrugging, Jake responded. "Probably having sex somewhere or something. Where else would they be?" Maybe it was the way he said it...so casually, or the fact that it was actually happening that creeped Anna out.

"You mean like..they are having sex, somewhere in my house?" She was disgusted.

"Nah, they probably walked to the Cove or something. That's where everyone does it." He responded. Shaken by this, Anna grabbed the bottle from him again, sipping another swig of vodka, only so she wouldn't think about what Jake had just told her.

As the night dwindled on, people came and left. Lexi and Eric finally showed up again, both wearing big smiles on their faces. Bradin left with Callie, probably to go get that ice cream he had promised her, and Jake stayed by Anna's side, as they both casually sipped the vodka. Anna had never _really_ drank before. Sure she'd had a beer with her friends back home on occassion, just to feel like a rebel, but never anything like this. And the alcohol was affecting her faster than she'd expected. Not wanting to ruin anything for herself, she decided to retire to sleep. She didn't want it to get to the point where she wasn't in control anymore, because Anna knew bad things would come from that. So at midnight, she said goodnight to Jake. "I'm just not feeling so great," she used as her excuse.

Disappointed, Jake nodded. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow then, right?" Anna nodded and headed upstairs, not caring when everyone left. She knew Lexi would take care of it. After changing into her pajamas and out of her sexy "get up", Anna went over to the windows to close her blinds. Across the way, she saw Bradin sitting at his desk. He looked up at her, and she smiled, waving at him through the screened in window.

"Night Bradin." She said quietly.

He smiled. "Goodnight Anna."


	6. Interlude

Sorry for the lack in updating...some unforseen personal business came up but now everything is cleared away and I am back at this story. I want to thank everyone for their lovely feedback and I hope you enjoy the rest!

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"Wake up, sleepyhead." A giggling voice sounded in Anna's ears as she was gently shaken awake. She stirred and sat up. Her head pounded and she groaned. Opening her eyes, she saw a giggling Lexi next to her, holding a glass of water with two asprin. "Take these, you'll feel better in an hour or so, and drink a lot of water." Anna remembered the vodka and the party.

"Oh my God, my Dad's going to kill me." She said, still dazed.

"No, me and some of the boys cleaned up last night after everyone left. It's spotless." Lexi assured her.

Anna couldn't help being surprised. She would have thought that Lexi would have just left everything for her to clean up. Taking the asprin and drinking the water, she rose. "What time is it?"

"8:30 about. I already took a shower and I thought you'd probably want to so I woke up you."

Anna looked confused. "Why?"

"Don't you remember...the boat?" She laughed. "We have to leave here at about 9:15 so I can get there before everyone else and get the boat ready."

Anna remembered now. They were all going on the boat today. She rose slowly and walked over to her bathroom. The alcohol had affected her more than she thought as her head spun and her stomach churned. The water in the shower shocked her and made her a little bit more awake. She was too tired to do anything with herself and again let her hair air dry. One thing she was not careless about however was covering up all the cuts and bruises. She took extra care, and even threw all the cover-up in her bag, knowing she'd likely have to reapply everything at some point that day. Anna threw on her black swim suit bottoms and the matching black top, blue Adidas soccer shorts, and a white tank top. Throwing a green fleece sweatshirt, she slipped on her Adidas sandals and threw a book and her iPod into her bag. Anna also brought 2 beach towels and sunscreen.

Lexi was waiting for her downstairs as Anna walked down there around 10 after nine. She had all of her things in a bag of her own and was chewing on some fruit she had found in the fridge. Lexi was dressed in a short yellow skirt, an orange halter, with a tiny red bikini. Her hair was perfectly straight and make up perfectly done. Anna had no idea how she did it. "Morning Sunshine." Lexi laughed, sliding her a glass of water. Anna nodded in aknowledgement, still slightly dazed. "It gets better once you build your tolerence up." Lexi reassured her.

"I hate alcohol," Anna mumbled.

"Jake was really impressed with you last night...me, him, and Eric were all cleaning up and he could not shut up about you. He thinks you're way hot. Anna Scott is the hottest thing to hit Playa Linda since well, me." Lexi giggled and put her arms around Anna's neck, hugging her. "We're going to have so much fun, Anna. They all want us, and we're in control. We're hot. There's nothing better than that."

Anna sipped her water, not liking the way Lexi was talking. Hot? She wasn't worried about that kind of thing. Since when had Lexi been so keen on being her friend? Anna just laughed. "Yeah...we should probably go though, don't you think?" Lexi looked at the clock and agreed. They ran outside and hopped into Lexi's black BMW.

They arrived and the docks around 9:35 and Lexi led the way to the boat. Everything that they passed was huge. They were all big, huge boats. "Here it is," Lexi pointed towards one of the largest boats on the lot.

"That's no boat." Anna spat, disbelievingly. "That's like...a yacht." She stood there in amazement.

"Well, if you want to be technical then yeah, sure it's a yacht." Lexi said without much of a care.

Anna timidly looked around as they entered the "boat". It was huge and classy...a pooltable, various sundecks, a television, bedrooms, a bar...it was something you'd see in the movies. "This is yours?" Anna couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"Yeah, my Dad bought it last year. He loves it but rarely gets to use it. We call the driver Benny because I can't pronounce his actual name. He only speaks French so it's sometimes hard to communicate with him, although I'm pretty well-versed in French because that's where I grew up when I was little from the time I was 2 until I was 6. We moved there from Playa Linda, and then moved back."

Anna's eyes were big. "Wow." She suddenly felt really small compared to everyone in Playa Linda. They were all amazing and she was...so...ordinary. "That's amazing."

Lexi seemed pleased enough that Anna was impressed. "They set breakfast food out by the dining area. Everyone should be here soon. I'll be right back though, I have to go tell Benny where to take us today and all."

Lexi bounded off and Anna stood there for a few minutes in the middle of the massive yacht. A few weeks ago, she would have never imagined that life could be so amazing. In the distance, she heard the voices of other kids and recognized them immediately. Taking one last look around, she went out to meet them.


	7. Calm Before the Storm

Bradin, Callie, Lexi, Eric, Jake and Anna all sat around the table in the cabin and dined on food. Everyone laughed and happily recalled events from the night before. Jake sat very close to Anna, and his hand was on top of her thigh. Every now and then he would send a look her way and smile. Anna didn't know how to react to this. Nobody had ever given her this much attention in her life...and to be honest it kind of scared her. As everyone was getting up from eating, Jake held her back as they walked off. Pulling her close into his chest, he whispered into her ear, "You look so hot." Anna blushed and gave him a half smile, turning to catch up with everyone.

Bradin sat on the sundeck, Callie laying next to him. He looked towards Anna as she walked around to find a spot to sit and couldn't help but admire her. His breathing became somewhat shorter and his heart raced a little. She just looked so...natural. You could tell she didn't try to be beautiful...she just was. Anna looked over at him and smiled. Bradin couldn't help but notice a certain sadness about her. Some people were just like that though, he reassured himself. He turned towards Callie as she baked in the sun. Lately, Bradin had been thinking that maybe he'd been wrong about Callie. She wasn't as genuine as he'd thought...she was just like Lexi in a lot of ways. Callie looked up at him and grinned deviously. "Follow me," she mouthed. Bradin didn't know where she was going to go but followed her nonetheless. Callie led them downstairs where all the lights were off. She creaked open a door and pushed Bradin in the room and onto the bed. Callie layed herself on top of him, passionately kissing him all over his body. For a few minutes, he went along with it, but when she tried to go further, he stopped her.

"What is it?" She asked.

Bradin started to answer her but thought about it for a moment. He realized that when she kissed him now, he felt nothing. The thought of being with Callie now just made him uncomfortable and edgy. It just wasn't right. "Callie...look...it's just..."

"Just say it, Bradin." She sulked.

"I don't want to be with you when I can't feel the same way for you that you feel for me. I hate that I'm being unfair to you and I don't know I'm really confused lately. I'm sorry Callie...I just...this isn't working."

They sat there in silence for a few moments until Callie looked up and him and glared. "Asshole." And with that, she ran out of the room.

Bradin sat there, confused with his new single status. Callie had been safe but he wanted more. His thoughts drifted towards Anna again. However, he knew that he couldn't go for her and pushed any idea of her out of his mind. He went back up to everyone else and saw that Callie was nowhere in sight. He sat at the edge of the boat and let his legs dangle over. When someone came and sat next to him, Bradin didn't even have to look up to know who it was. He could tell by the sweet, light scent that it was Anna. "Trouble in Paradise?" She asked.

Bradin sighed. "It just needed to happen. Things weren't working out." The two sat in silence for a few moments just looking out over the beautiful water. The day was turning out to be a beautiful one again. Finally, the silence was broken. "Is she okay?"

"Who? Callie?" Anna asked. "Well...I mean she's only holed herself up in the bathroom and is crying her eyes out...is that's her being okay..." Bradin shut his eyes. "She's really sad, Bradin. She really cares for you." Anna's voice carried such compassion and warmth towards Callie that it killed Bradin.

"I know...I'm a prick." He responded quietly. "But wouldn't I be more of a prick if I stayed with her when I didn't want to?"

Anna nodded. "You're right."

The rest of the day, everyone minus Callie had fun swimming and joking around, eating and being the crazy teenagers that they were. After awhile Anna let her guard down more towards Jake and let him get closer. She explained to him that she wasn't ready for an actual relationship and he was fine with that. They were good friends and that was all that mattered. All of them grew closer that day. Lexi and Eric disappeared for awhile and came back, happy again. Jesse was able to take his mind off of Callie enough to allow himself to enjoy the time he had with his friends. The day really was a success. As the sun was setting over Playa Linda, the boat returned to the dock and the kids parted ways. Lexi dropped Anna and Bradin off since Bradin didn't think it'd be right to expect Callie to drop him off.

Yes, Playa Linda was peaceful enough. But things would soon turn into a whirlwind of events that would change them all forever.


End file.
